ariariana
Member
She doesn’t like to be carried, should i be worried ? when i attempt to carry her she flips and kicks and scratches. should i just stop trying to carry her? Any tips on strategies to carry her will be highly appreciated!
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Niomi
Well-Known Member
You could use a baby blanket or towel. Throw the cloth over your rabbit. As you pick her up, wrap the towel around her. You could also put the cloth down next to her. Then quickly place her on the cloth. Hold her there and wrap her up like a baby before you pick her up. My mini rex rabbit will calm down faster if you cover their eyes with the cloth so she can't see.
Why are you trying to carry her? Most rabbits do not like being picked up and carried. If she needs to be brought from one place to another (even inside the house) it's safest to use a carrier or box.
ariariana
Member
Yeah, lately I've just been using a soft blanket but even then she squirms and I fear that one day I might drop her :/ Thanks though!
ariariana
Member
I only pick her up when I need to transport her. So whenever I need to move her, I should use her carrier? Do you have any suggestions on moving her into the carrier because she usually doesn't just walk on in?
Lure her into the carrier with treats, every time she step in give her a treat. Do this practice a few times and say a command. She will later associate the carrier with something positive and know what to do.
You can also try to teach your bun to tolerate being picked up. But that will need you to earn her trust and a lot of patience.
Myself always move my bunnies while carrying them. But, they all associate picking up with something positive. So my bunnies are extremely easy to handle for me, other people might have a trouble with scratching and so on.
You can start with sitting on the floor and let her jump onto your legs, if she’s to scared of jumping onto the legs. You can start with just petting her and cuddling.
The bunny that most scared of humans among my bunnies, I always have a cuddle time with him before picking him up. He still have problem going up to people with his free will.
But when I carry him, he’s a sweetheart. I often give him a treat or scratch him behind the ear which he love.
So you can start slowly, let her get used with being touched everywhere. When she have no problem with being touched everywhere, you can just slowly lift her front paws up/ upper body while she still stand on the ground. When she’s used with this step without backing down and relaxed.
You start with touching her behind, if she back down. Just keep on doing the same step without lifting up. If she’s not reacting you can lift up slowly, just a few mm of the ground and put her down fast.
Then it’s just repeating the step until she’s used or learn to tolerate being picked up.
During the practice you should use treats or if your bunny love being petted or scratched will also work as encouragement. Enforcing a positive experience to being picked up with the behavior you want them to have.
All my bunnies have never had a trouble being picked up or handled. It helped a lot when I visit the veterinarian for check ups and it become less stressful for my bunnies.
Specially for the bunny that’s scared of humans.
You can use your daily pellets/ veggies ration as treats. I always did it in the beginning when I started to teach my bunnies and socialize them [emoji5]
You can also try to teach your bun to tolerate being picked up. But that will need you to earn her trust and a lot of patience.
Myself always move my bunnies while carrying them. But, they all associate picking up with something positive. So my bunnies are extremely easy to handle for me, other people might have a trouble with scratching and so on.
You can start with sitting on the floor and let her jump onto your legs, if she’s to scared of jumping onto the legs. You can start with just petting her and cuddling.
The bunny that most scared of humans among my bunnies, I always have a cuddle time with him before picking him up. He still have problem going up to people with his free will.
But when I carry him, he’s a sweetheart. I often give him a treat or scratch him behind the ear which he love.
So you can start slowly, let her get used with being touched everywhere. When she have no problem with being touched everywhere, you can just slowly lift her front paws up/ upper body while she still stand on the ground. When she’s used with this step without backing down and relaxed.
You start with touching her behind, if she back down. Just keep on doing the same step without lifting up. If she’s not reacting you can lift up slowly, just a few mm of the ground and put her down fast.
Then it’s just repeating the step until she’s used or learn to tolerate being picked up.
During the practice you should use treats or if your bunny love being petted or scratched will also work as encouragement. Enforcing a positive experience to being picked up with the behavior you want them to have.
All my bunnies have never had a trouble being picked up or handled. It helped a lot when I visit the veterinarian for check ups and it become less stressful for my bunnies.
Specially for the bunny that’s scared of humans.
You can use your daily pellets/ veggies ration as treats. I always did it in the beginning when I started to teach my bunnies and socialize them [emoji5]
